Kim Joo-hyung tied for fifth place in the ‘PGA King of Kings’ match.
Kim Joo-hyung (21, CJ Korea Express), ranked 15th in the world and the highest among Korean players, is drawing attention as a player who is expected to play a big role on the PGA Tour this year. Sports Illustrated picked him as one of the five players to win this year’s major tournament, and the PGA Tour Dotcom also ranked Kim Joo-hyung as the top 10 players under the age of 23 to pay attention to in 2023.
In return for these expectations, Kim Joo-hyung was named the top five in the opening game of the new year held as the “King of Kings.” In the fourth round of the Century Tournament of Champions (total prize money of $15 million) held at Capalua Plantation Course (par 73,7596 yards) in Kapalua, Maui Island, Hawaii, on the 9th, Kim Joo-hyung tied six birdies and one bogey and shot a 5-under 68. Kim Joo-hyung, who recorded a 22-under 270 total, finished the tournament tied for fifth place. This tournament is a “King of Kings” where only players who won the PGA Tour last year or participated in the Tour Championship, the final match of the season, can participate, and Kim Joo-hyung participated for the first time. Kim Joo-hyung, who won two games at the Wyndham Championship in August last year and the Shriners Children’s Open in October, maintained his top five performance for the first time in this tournament since signing a main sponsor contract with Nike.
Kim Joo-hyung, who started the tournament alone in fourth place, one stroke behind the joint lead, reduced eight shots with two eagle shots in the first round, showed an outstanding sense of shot until the end. Kim Joo-hyung, who started the final round tied for fifth, made a birdie after putting his second shot on the 12th hole (par 4) to about 2 holes, and on the 14th and 16th holes, consecutive birdies made a rise. He added a pleasant birdie on the last 18th hole (par 5). Lee Kyung-hoon (32) who first participated in the tournament last year and ranked 33rd, greatly increased his ranking to a joint seventh place (21-under 271). Lim Sung-jae (25, CJ Logistics) tied for 13th place (19, under par, 2,273). 안전놀이터
Jon Lam (29, Spain), who shot a 27-under 265, won the championship. He won his eighth career victory in eight months since the Mexico Open in May last year. The prize money is 2.7 million dollars (about 3.37 billion won. Lam, who was tied for fifth place, seven shots behind the leader Colin Morikawa (25, USA) until the third round, hit 10 under par in the final round alone, creating a great reversal.
